PENSACOLA, Fla. --
Emergency officials on the western Florida Panhandle went into battle
mode late Wednesday as heavier oil washed on shore at the Alabama state
line and threatened inland bayous and estuaries in both states.

The Florida Department of Environmental Protection reported late Wednesday night that sheen and tarballs were seen by air reconnaissance outside Pensacola Pass. FDEP sent out a skimmer but said the sheen was minimal and did not have plans to close the pass Wednesday evening.

Escambia
County officials said the substance was ankle deep Wednesday on the
beach outside the landmark FloraBama Lounge, on the Florida side of the
line on Perdido Key.

Signs were posted Wednesday on Perdido Key
warning people to stay out of the water, but the beaches there remain
open.

County Commissioner Gene Valentino said booms that the
county had placed along its inland estuaries and waterways were being
locked into place late Tuesday and would be monitored overnight.

"Through
the weekend, significant portions of the plume will be pushed into the
Panhandle," County Commissioner Gene Valentino said.

Coin-sized
tar balls began washing up along the shoreline from Perdido Key through
Pensacola Beach and the Gulf Islands Seashore National Park seven days
ago. On Wednesday, thicker oil was first reported near the state line
and health warnings were posted on six miles of Florida beaches.

Valentino
said the county would do everything to protect the beaches and inland
waters and deal with reimbursement from the federal government and BP
later.

"We will be deploying all of our resources," he said.

Earlier
Wednesday, Greg Hall had watched dolphins off Pensacola Beach as he
took his daily walk. The lifelong resident of the area is monitoring the
beach for county officials. He was among the spotters who reported the
first tar balls Friday.

"Those guys are too close to shore, I
haven't seen them that close in before. The water is pretty shallow
there," he said as watched the dolphins. Moments later, the dolphins
turned toward deeper water. Hall was relieved.

"I snorkel a lot
and I know there is so much more to this," he said. "How does BP
compensate for an entire ecosystem?"

Florida officials were angry
at officials in Alabama for giving late word on the heavy oil breaching
booms designed to protect inland waterways on that side of the state
line.

John Temperilli, a contractor with the Washington-based
James Lee Witt Group for crisis management, said the Coast Guard failed
to relay the message.

"No one bothered to notify us when they
first intercepted the oil coming through the pass. Perdido Pass is our
back door," he said.

(Information from pnj.com was included in this report.)(Updated at 9:14 p.m. to include report of oil sheen outside Pensacola Pass.)